


Winter Magic

by Blue_Night



Category: Football RPF, Real Person Fiction
Genre: Alternate Universe, Childhood, Friendship/Love, Fun, Happy Ending, Kids, M/M, Romantic Fluff, Sledding, Snow, Waiting, Winter, missing a friend
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-24
Updated: 2015-11-24
Packaged: 2018-05-03 04:50:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,462
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5277338
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Blue_Night/pseuds/Blue_Night
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Mario spends the Christmas Day with his friends, sledding with his brand-new sleigh, when he meets a blond boy with the name Marco who visits his grandparents during the holidays. What will happen when Marco has to leave again? Will they see each other again one day or will this magical week be the only time they could spend together?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Winter Magic

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Bayerngirl19](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bayerngirl19/gifts).



> This idea popped up in my mind yesterday when I couldn't sleep and I needed some fluff after some rough couple of days and some health issues. Knowing that you had even much rougher times to face during the last weeks, I want to gift this work to you my dear, hoping that it will cheer you up a little bit.

“Woohoo, watch out, I'm coming!” Mario shouted as he pushed himself forward, lying flatly on his stomach on his brand-new sled. The trees flew by as he dashed down the long and steep hill, shouting with joy about how perfectly his sleigh glided over the thick snow covering everything.

When he finally slowed down at the base of their course, his cheeks were red from the cold and his joy, and Mario let out one last shout before he stopped to jump from his sleigh and walk back to the top of his favorite hill.

His best friend Thomas almost bumped into him because he stopped too late, and Mario squeaked and jumped to the side with a snicker. “Thomas! I'll put snow into your collar the next time you'll do that!” he complained, but Thomas only stuck his tongue out with a giggle and ran away, upwards the hill with his orange bobsleigh. “Try to catch me!” he shouted over his shoulder, knowing quite well that he was much faster with his longer legs.

Mario only snorted, not willing to start to sweat by running up the hill like his friend, following him much slower, when he suddenly saw an unknown boy standing behind a large oak, partly hidden by the thick trunk, watching him.

Mario had never seen this kid before and he came to an abrupt halt, curiously staring back at the other boy. He had blond hair and was a little bit taller than he himself, probably also a little bit older, maybe twelve or thirteen. His face was pale and his face showed a wistful expression as he watched Mario's friends dashing down the hill with their sleds and bobsleighs, screaming and laughing.

It was Christmas Day and Mario and his friends used the opportunity to test their new sleighs before they would have to spend the afternoon with their families, parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles, being trapped inside their homes and having to listen to the same old stories again and again. Christ Child had been so kind to listen to the prayers of the ten years old boy to let it snow and had covered the town where Mario and his friends lived with a thick layer of perfectly soft and white snow.

Mario indecisively chewed on his bottom lip, but then, he took a deep breath and trudged in the unknown boy's direction, the snow scrunching under his boots.

“Hey! I am Mario!” he greeted the boy when he had reached him, smiling cautiously at him with his head cocked to the side. The blond looked at him and hesitantly smiled back. “Hey, I'm Marco,” he replied after two or three seconds. His voice was smooth and filled with hope that Mario was willing to let him play with him, and the brown eyes looking curiously at him were the most beautiful eyes Mario had ever seen in his whole life. They weren't as dark-brown as his own ones, the color reminded him of the pieces of amber Mario had once seen in a museum he had visited with his class. There were golden sparks dancing around in Marco's astonishing eyes, making them even more remarkable and beautiful.

“Why don't you come sledding with me, Marco?” he suggested, and the taller boy cast his eyes down. “I don't have a sleigh,” he murmured, stuffing his hands into the pockets of his jacket in a sheepish and defiant manner.

Mario chewed on his lip again. Thomas, Philipp and Bastian had asked him if they were allowed to test his new sled, but Mario hadn't wanted that because he had gotten it only yesterday as one of his Christmas presents and he was afraid that his sometimes careless friends would damage it. But now, seeing Marco shooting a furtive and wistful glance at his sleigh, he quickly made up his mind.

“You can use my sled, Marco. We can take turns and sit together on it, it is large enough. I am sure that we will have fun, and my friends are nice and won't bite you. Just come with me,” he said, offering the grasp of the cord to Marco. The blond's face lit up with pure happiness. “Really? You would do that? I saw that you didn't let your friends use your sleigh,” he asked, blushing as he realized that he had just admitted that he had watched Mario for a while.

Mario shrugged his shoulders and grinned at him. “They have their own bobsleighs and sleds. You don't have one. I am sure that we will be faster and defeat them if we're sitting together on my sled, it'll be great fun!”

Marco's eyes sparkled golden as he nodded his head, excitedly. “Yes, it'll be fun!” he exclaimed, pulling the sled up the hill with Mario walking beside him. When they reached the top where his friends were waiting for them with big eyes, he pointed at Marco and said: “This is Marco. He doesn't have a sled, so we will take turns or sit together on it. Marco, these are Thomas, Philipp and Bastian, my friends. Let's show them that we will beat them!”

Thomas and Philipp rolled their eyes, but Bastian only laughed. “You only want to use Marco's size to your advantage, little one. Come on, guys, let's show these two cheeky M & Ms that we will be faster!” he said, swinging his leg over his own sled and rushing down the hill.

Mario and Marco hurried to follow, and soon enough, the five boys dashed down the hill again and again, their shouts and laughter echoing in the cold air of the first real winter day.

Mario hadn't thought it possible, but he loved sledding with Marco, the taller back of his new friend shielding him from the cold wind when they rushed down the course, and his arms wrapped around his waist when the blond sat behind him warming his front. It didn't take long until Marco's former pale cheeks were as rosy as his own ones, the tip of his nose and his ears glowing red, but Marco didn't seem to mind the cold, at all, his eyes sparkling golden with pure happiness and fun.

When they finally had to go home to spend the rest of the day with their families, they promised to come here again the next day and Mario went home with a wonderful warm and happy feeling in his belly.

 

***

 

The next days, it snowed more and Mario spent the days with his friends on the hill from the morning to the early evening, sledding and building a huge snowman together with Marco. Marco had told him that he spent the holidays with his grandparents, and Mario felt sad when he thought of his new friend's soon departure. He told himself that he would have to ask him for his address so they could stay in contact, but he always forgot it, too busied with having fun with his friends to remember that question.

One day, they had a big snowball fight and another day, they played hide and seek in the forest before going back to dashing down their favorite course and Mario was happier than he had ever been in his life before, savoring his days to the fullest.

The days went by and when the last day of the holidays came, Mario still hadn't asked Marco where he lived. He only knew his first name and when he made his way to their hill, he murmured to himself again and again: “Don't forget to ask Marco about his surname and his address. Don't forget to ask Marco...”

Bastian, Philipp and Thomas already waited for him, but Marco was nowhere in sight when he reached the base of the steep hill. Mario swallowed down his disappointment, assuring himself that he was just late and would come, soon.

But, Marco didn't come, and when Mario went back home after hours of waiting and waiting, he had to bite back hot tears of sorrow and disappointment.

During the next three years, Mario waited for Marco to come to their hill on each holiday he had, hoping that the other boy might show up again, his friends telling him how stupid he was and that Marco surely had already forgotten him.

After three years, Mario finally believed them and stopped waiting for the blond boy with the beautiful amber-golden eyes, but Mario never forgot him and the happy week they had spent together, hoarding the memories of this magical winter holiday like a treasure.

 

***

 

_Ten years later:_

 

“Fuck, this damn cold!” Mario Götze groaned, blowing over his ice-cold hands as he entered the office of the small repair shop. The heater of his old Corolla had given up just when the winter had claimed Munich, and Mario was a shivering mess each time he had to drive with it. Finally, he had decided that enough was enough, and that he would need to spend some money for the repair, maybe asking his parents to lend him some money or make the repair their Christmas present for him.

Hopefully, this small repair shop wouldn't take as much money as one of the big Toyota garages normally did, Mario had spent hours to search for a garage nearby his home and finally found the address of this one, called **_'Reus' Repair Service'_**.

The young man behind the counter looked up with a grin by Mario's words, tilting his head to the side. “You live in Munich and don't like winters?” he asked amused, his smooth voice reminding Mario of warm milk with honey, something he really could do with right now.

It wasn't that he didn't like winters and snow, because once, when he had been a boy, he had loved both, especially the one magical winter when he had been ten years old and spent the entire holiday on his favorite hill, sledding down the steep course again and again with his friends – and the boy Marco. But this had been long ago, and the winters in Munich weren't like the winters in city where he had grown up. He had moved from his small Bavarian hometown to Munich when he had started his education to become a kindergarten teacher, and he actually missed the winters he knew from his childhood. It snowed oftentimes in Munich, but the snow turned into ugly mud very quickly in the big capital of Bavaria and this wasn't really enjoyable.

“I do like them,” he replied when he realized that the young repairman was still waiting for his answer, “but, the heater of my car stopped working a couple of days ago and I feel like an icicle.”

The repairman chuckled. “Yeah, I can see that. What type of car?” he asked and Mario had to think of milk and honey again. The last time, a voice had reminded him of this delicious drink had been when he had met Marco. Mario sighed wistfully and finally let go of his cold and red hands to take a closer look at the repairman behind the counter.

“It's an old Corolla from the late nineties... Marco?!” Mario stared disbelievingly at the young blond with the thick black oil-stripe smeared over his forehead where he must have wiped it earlier. He was taller, broader and ten years older, of course, but, he was still Marco. There was no way that any other being could have the same beautiful amber-golden eyes and the same crooked grin.

A slight blond stubble now covered Marco's pale cheeks and he had a tattoo on his left arm he hadn't had back then when he had been thirteen, but Mario knew with all his heart that he had finally found his Marco again.

“Mario?!” Marco stammered back, his eyes roaming over Mario's own stubbly cheeks and his figure hidden under his thick winter jacket. “Are you really Mario, the sweet boy who was willing to share his brand-new sled with me?” the older one's voice now trembled with suppressed emotions and his happy smile lit up the gloomy winter day as if the sun had left its hiding place behind the thick gray clouds hanging deep in the sky.

“Yes, I am Mario. What – what are you doing here?” he asked, still too stunned to believe his luck that he had finally found his friend again.

“This is my own repair shop. I became a mechanic after finishing school and I made my master last year. My father had this garage for more than thirty years, and I assumed it when I had passed my master exams,” Marco explained, a shadow flickering over his face. “In the year when I spent my holiday with my grandparents, my father had an accident at work and he had to stay in the hospital for weeks. It was the last day of the holidays, and my grandparents drove back with me to Munich before I could tell you what had happened. After that accident, my father needed help and I spent my afternoons and the holidays here in the shop to help him. We had a co-worker, but still. I thought oftentimes of you, but somehow, I never managed to come to your town again and search for you. I knew only your first name and I told myself off for not having asked you for your surname and your address more oftentimes than I can count. My grandparents moved to Munich to support my family and so, there was no possibility for me to go there again. I am so happy that you found your way here, Mario. This week was the happiest week in my entire life – up to that horrible day, at least.”

Mario smiled shakily. “The same here, Marco, it was the happiest week for me, too. I was so angry with myself that I hadn't asked you about your surname and your address, either. I am so sorry to hear about your dad. How is he nowadays?”

“Better, thank you. He comes two afternoons to work a little bit, doing the office work and some minor repairs. But, let's have a look at your heater, Sunny,” Marco said after clearing his throat, and Mario's heart made a happy flip when he heard Marco using the petname he had given him the second day of their holiday when they had built the snowman. His friends hadn't been right with what they had said, Marco hadn't forgotten him. Life hadn't been friendly to him, but, he hadn't forgotten him.

He followed Marco outside, suppressing the urge to gently wipe the black stripe from his forehead. “I don't know what happened, one morning when I started the car, the heater didn't work anymore,” he said, rubbing his cold hands again. “I hoped that it would start to work on its own again, because I actually can't spend a lot of money for the repair, but, it is too cold to wait any longer.”

Marco turned to him and smiled. “My father was specialized in Toyota, I'm sure that I will be able to make it work again. And don't worry about the money, please. I would never take money from you, Sunny. I have enough orders, my garage fortunately makes quite a lot of money, more than I would have thought. The clients my father had over the decades all stayed with me and they brought others with them. My assistant has the day off today and my trainee is at school, but, I'll try to fix it until tomorrow.”

Mario's heart made another flip. “That would be great, Marco, thank you. I can take the subway to the kindergarten where I make my internship for the next weeks. The money was really an issue for me, the education to become a kindergarten teacher costs quite a lot,” he admitted, and Marco whistled through his teeth. “Wow, I can see you with children, Sunny. I am sure that you will be an awesome teacher for little kids.”

Mario blushed by this praise. “Uhm, thank you. I want to work with handicapped kids later and there are only little men who want to do that. But, I really want to do something for you in return for the repair. Why don't you come to me for dinner in the evening?” he asked, holding his breath as he waited for Marco's answer.

Marco reached out to briefly stroke his flushed cheek. “You don't have to do anything for me, Sunny. You were willing to share your precious sled with a boy you didn't know, at all, and you made this winter holiday to the happiest time in my life with that. The least I can do for you is to help you with your heater now. But, I would love to come to you and I won't let you go this time without having your address and your phone number because I really don't want having to wait for another ten years until I'll meet you again,” he said, sincerely, and Mario smiled back, happily.

“Me neither, Marco. I really don't want to wait for that to happen for another ten years myself,” he admitted hoarsely, and when he looked in the most beautiful amber-brown eyes he had ever seen, watching the happy golden sparks dancing around in them, he knew that this time, he wouldn't lose Marco again, because this time, they would make it right and not let go off each other again.

 

***

 

_One year later:_

 

“Woohoo! Watch out, I'm coming!” Mario shouted as he dashed down the long and steep hill of their favorite course on his old sled that he waited for him to use it again, hidden in a corner in the cellar of his parent's house.

Marco waited at the base of the hill for him, leaned against the trunk of the thick oak where they had first met, smiling at him. His pale cheeks were rosy and his amber-brown eyes sparkled golden as he watched his boyfriend rushing down the hill with shouts of joy.

He still couldn't believe his luck that he had found his beloved Sunny again, the sweet boy he had fallen in love with right at first sight when the ten-years-old brunet had offered him to share his beloved sleigh with him although he hadn't known him.

Marco had known that he had to hide his feelings from the younger one who was too small and too innocent to understand that Marco felt more for him than just friendship, and he had savored each minute he had spent with his Sunny to the fullest, the memories of this magical week helping him through the dark hours when he had sat beside the hospital bed of his father.

Marco smiled as he watched Mario trudging through the thick white snow in his direction, pulling his sleigh after him. “Hey, I am Mario!” he said with a smile and Marco had to blink against sudden tears welling up in his eyes when he remembered the first words Mario had spoken to him.

“Hey, I am Marco,” he repeated his own words and Mario cocked his head to the side. “Why don't you come sledding with me, Marco?” he asked and Marco's heart clenched with all the love he felt for his Sunny. “I don't have a sleigh,” he murmured, lost in the memories of the winter eleven years ago.

“You can use my sled, Marco, you can always use my sled. We can sit there together and it'll be great fun,” Mario replied, tenderly, taking his hand in his own. There were other kids sledding down the hill and watching curiously the two young men having as much fun with the sledding as they had, and therefore, Mario didn't kiss him, but this wasn't necessary. Mario's wonderful chocolate-brown eyes, the most beautiful eyes Marco had ever seen, were full of love as they climbed the steep hill together and Marco looked back at him with the same deep love showing in his own eyes.

The last year, since the moment his Sunny had walked into his repair shop, had been the happiest year in his entire life, together with the one magical week when he had been thirteen years old, visiting his grandparents.

After his father's accident, Marco had almost hated the long and dark winters for several years, but, he knew that he would never hate them again, because with Mario by his side, every winter would always be magical and special.

Marco gently entangled their glove-covered fingers with a happy smile and followed Mario upwards the hill and right into a bright, happy and wonderful future.

 

_The End_

**Author's Note:**

> For all of you who don't know M&M: this is a very popular sweet in Germany, small drops of chocolate, sometimes filled with peanuts. There is a lot of advertisement on TV with two 'living' M&M drops, so Bastian's statement is meant ambigious.

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [A wonderful winter day](https://archiveofourown.org/works/5367686) by [GoForGoals](https://archiveofourown.org/users/GoForGoals/pseuds/GoForGoals)




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